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IHS Report: Marcellus Dethrones Haynesville as Top Producing Play

take a bow Congratulations to the Marcellus. Stand up and take a bow! A new report just released by research company IHS says the Marcellus Shale has now surpassed the Haynesville Shale to be the largest natural gas producing play in the U.S.

Here’s the IHS press release announcing “game-changer” Marcellus report, which includes some interesting highlights:

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Judge Refuses to Recuse Himself from Range v Robinson Twp Case

Last week MDN told you about the lawsuit filed by Range Resources against Robinson Township (Washington County), PA for rejecting their request to build two drill pads in the township (see Range Takes Robinson Twp, PA to Court over Permit Rejections). Range has asked the judge in the case, John F. DiSalle, to recuse himself from the case because his wife, Diane DiSalle, is a big-time anti-driller. Unfortunately for Range, the judge has said “no”…

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NY Protesters Arrested for Blocking NatGas Storage Facility

Twelve protesters, no doubt suffering from FDS (Fracking Derangement Syndrome), illegally blocked the entrance to a depleted salt cavern near Watkins Glen, NY yesterday. They were arrested by local police. Inergy plans to turn the salt cavern into storage for liquefied natural gas (i.e., propane). The protesters believe storing natural gas in the facility will encourage fracking in New York, so they locked arms to stop trucks from entering or leaving the facility. Among the protesters was anti-drilling author and Ithaca College “distinguished scholar in residence” Sandra Steingraber.

The Inergy storage facility is the only planned new storage for natural gas in the entire northeast—something desperately needed. Rather than limit fracking, the protesters’ actions (if successful in stopping the facility) would cause the price of natural gas to go up for everyone throughout the northeast. The protesters don’t seem to care (and frankly don’t have a clue)…

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National Fuel/Seneca Update: Spend & Drill in the Marcellus

Yesterday, National Fuel Gas (and its drilling subsidiary Seneca Resources) issued its best estimate for fiscal years 2013 and 2014 with respect to how much natural gas they expect to produce, and how much money they’re going to spend drilling for it. The brief version: They’ll spend the vast majority of their money on drilling in the Marcellus/Utica, and the vast majority of the gas they produce will come from the Marcellus/Utica.

The estimates (“guidance”) provided yesterday by National Fuel:

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MarkWest Signs Deal with PDC Energy for OH Utica Shale, Etcetera

Yesterday, PDC Energy announced they would nearly double their drilling budget for the Ohio Utica Shale this year (see PDC Nearly Doubles Utica Shale Drilling Budget for 2013). PDC’s announcement mentioned they will do a deal with MarkWest for pipelines and processing. Last night, MarkWest issued their announcement to say they’ve officially signed a deal with PDC to provide “gathering, processing, fractionation, and marketing services in the Utica Shale.” In their announcement, MarkWest took the opportunity to remind everyone this is the fourth Utica Shale driller they’ve signed up in the past nine months—the other three are Gulfport, Antero and Rex Energy—and to chronicle the work they’re doing at their Cadiz and Seneca processing facilities in the Utica Shale.

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Anti-Drilling Groups Want ODNR to Shut Down All Injection Wells

Anti-drilling groups held multiple concurrent press conferences in Ohio yesterday to demand the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources (ODNR) stop doing their job in regulating wastewater injection wells. Instead, the enviro-extremist groups want the federal EPA to take over the job. Whacko. Their rationale? One bad actor, Ben Lupo, dumped wastewater down a storm drain in Youngstown.

What does Lupo’s actions have to do with wastewater injection wells? Er right…Nothing, actually! Such twisted reasoning is called a non sequitur—an illogical argument. Just because one bad actor dumped wastewater instead of properly disposing of it in an injection well doesn’t mean injection wells are not properly regulated. It “doesn’t follow.” But that’s what passes for logic among the fracking-deranged crowd.

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